NEWS

Since they appeared with their self-titled, self-released EP back in 2016, Washington, DC trio Flasher has exuded both clarity of intent and radiant self-confidence. Critically applauded from the start, that initial release offered a clear blueprint. By turns razor sharp and woozy, skipping from shoegaze to punk and back again, it offered confirmation of a band whose wiry energy and melodic ease made them instantly arresting.

Today, Flasherannounce their signing to Domino. They've also shared a new video and song, the exhilarating ‘Skim Milk’. The band describes the song and video below:

“The themes in ‘Skim Milk’ and its video might be described as being haunted by your own desire for belonging. We’re not bemoaning “no future, no fate”, we’re advocating for it. From getting a mortgage, to going to college, to crafting public policy, folks are always telling you to think of your future, to make choices in the name of some future. But most folks don’t have the privilege to live outside the present. This kind of future tense, aspirational bullshit means being held hostage by a future that’s already abandoned you. We’d rather escape to something new and unknown than hold out for a good life that hates us and expects us to make lemonade out of miserableness. Instead of holding out and hanging on, we're here to tell you (and ourselves) - “go.””

Domino is very proud to mark the return of Jon Hopkins and his new album, Singularity, his first since 2013’s breakthrough, Immunity. Singularity is due for release on 4th May 2018. Along with news of Singularity, Hopkins has shared ‘Emerald Rush’ the first track to be released from the album. Listen to the track and watch the animated video, directed by Robert Hunter & Elliot Dear HERE.

In addition to news of Singularity, Hopkins has announced a run of live dates across the UK & Europe with US dates to be announced shortly. He will also be making a number of festival appearances in 2018.

Singularity begins and ends on the same note: a universe beginning, expanding, and contracting towards the same infinitesimal point. Where Immunity – his hypnotic breakthrough LP – charted the dark alternative reality of an epic night out, Singularity explores the dissonance between dystopian urbanity and the green forest. It is a journey that returns to where it began – from the opening note of foreboding to the final sound of acceptance.

Shaped by his experiences with meditation and trance states, the album flows seamlessly from rugged techno to transcendent choral music, from solo acoustic piano to psychedelic ambient. Its epic musical palette is visceral and emotionally honest: with a destructive opener full of industrial electronics and sonic claustrophobia and a redemptive, pure end on solo piano.

Exploring the connectivity of the mind, sonics and the natural world, Singularity reflects the different psychological states Hopkins experienced while writing and recording. It is a transformative trip of defiance from his initial sense of frustration at the state of the contemporary world to the ultimate conclusion that a true sense of peace and belonging can only come from nature.

Singularity is intended to be listened to in one sitting, as a complete body of work.

For their latest attack, the Domino artists The Kills re-wired the circuits of Saul Williams’ “List of Demands (Reparations)” to create a wounded, volcanic, and urgent anthem. An opaque but powerful litany that could incite the most apathetic to action, a wake-up call capable of being interpreted as personal or political. The song comes backed with a dazzling cover of Peter Tosh’s “Steppin’ Razor”. Artwork for the single was created especially for the release by Shepard Fairey.

The greatest duos teeter on the cliff’s edge between chaos and equilibrium, salvation and obliteration, 10,000-watt voltage and gothic darkness. For a decade and a half, The Kills have mastered that savage balance, unleashing artful detonation and subtle vocal and guitar violence. That’s five albums and four EPs where Alison Mosshart and Jamie Hince reimagined the possibilities of modern duality—alchemizing garage rock, punk, and blues into smoke clouds, psychic carnage, and a smoldering nocturnal slink. A northwest passage between Outkast and Suicide.

“It’s a song of strength and empowerment, rooted in the idea of rising above,” Mosshart says. “It was one of those songs you’re almost scared to cover, because it carries so much respect. It wasn’t a straight up love song or a drug song. It was defined, serious, and perfect already. With certain songs, you feel like an intruder trying to sing them, but this one felt like my own.”

You can only cover a classic by successfully re-inventing it from the foundation up. In this instance, Mosshart and Hince slowed down Williams’ blistering post-punk and quasi-rap testament to political courage, to something resembling slightly sped-up dub—full of booming drums, gorgeous negative space, and Mosshart’s concealed dagger yawp.

The Williams original carried a special resonance after becoming one of the backstage jams regularly played before Kills’ shows. The banger you play to hype yourself prior to getting on-stage and trying to conquer the world. Williams’ lyrics brilliantly double as self-motivational propulsion and a poetic indictment of various iniquities. It’s somehow vague enough to allow for any application, but it’s as personal as blood dripping on a ransom note.

Decamping to the legendary Sunset Sound in Hollywood with producer Chris Coady, The Kills recorded both songs in three days. Until they entered the studio, they’d never sat down and played either. It took myriad approaches at varying tempos—searching for the right groove they found it. Only when they slowed it down to double time did the new haunting melody emerge.

“List of Demands” was so impactful to us—it was the kind of song that would come on backstage and everyone would stop what they were doing and stand up, “ Hince says. “The more I found myself listening to the lyrics, the more I heard in them, and found myself singing along with goose bumps. The brilliant thing about it is that it speaks to so many different ideas—a true underground thing like the best Iggy Pop songs.”

Saul Williams returned the compliment, waxing rhapsodically about The Kills’ tribute. “I always felt envious of the way the 60's generation shared songs and ideologies. Jimi singing Dylan. Rotary Connection singing Otis Redding. The Stones singing the blues,” Williams said. “This is all part of the beauty and power of music and it reverberates deeply in me. All this to say, I'm honored. I liked The Kills before they chose to cover ‘LOD.’ If they can feel themselves in that song, it's because they are as much a part of it as I am.”

It’s an affirmation of the profound meaning that a song can inhabit, particularly in times of turmoil and duress. The Kills channeled those past nexuses, creating a new form from biblical material, another attack on complacency, a tribute to the joys of flux, a transmission that carries on the unwavering belief that some things must change.

Artist Shepard Fairey, whose striking image was created for the single’s sleeve art, says, “I've been a fan of The Kills for years, and I initially loved them because I can't say no to great garage rock with attitude, grit, and a vocalist in Alison Mosshart with a ridiculous amount of heart and soul. In recent years though, they've turned into even more than that. They’re now great songwriters who have stayed true to their roots but also expanded their musical palette. When Alison and Jamie approached me about doing the art for the song “List of Demands” and shared their version of the song, I was excited both because I love their version of the song, and I think it's a song that makes sense for the state of things in the world right now. We need music that speaks to the struggles of the average person in the face of oppressive powers. The art I created was meant to reflect the sentiment of the song and the idea that people have power in numbers and are looking back at those in power with their hands up, making their demands. The do-it-yourself spirit of punk rock and activist propaganda influenced the art and design."

The Kills have announced upcoming US shows, with all going on sale tomorrow. Saul Williams will join The Kills for the LA show in August, and as their very special guest will play a full set prior to The Kills taking the stage. The band will be returning to London, supporting Foo Fighters at the Olympic Stadium on Saturday the 23rd of June. See below for worldwide dates. Get your tickets from: http://thekills.tv/

The Kills’ last release was their much-lauded June 2016 album Ash & Ice, which spawned the singles “Doing It To Death” and “Heart Of A Dog”. The band toured the album for 18 months performing at multiple festivals, including Coachella and David Lynch’s Festival of Disruption, and performed on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Late Late Show with James Corden and Conan. They appeared in the recent Nashville episode of Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown on CNN, in which Alison toured Nashville with Bourdain before the band played a song live for a scene in the show.

Beautiful Thing, the forthcoming solo album from Alexis Taylor will be released on April 20th via Domino. It is a very new, very individualist and – yes – very beautiful reflection of a life that's changed immeasurably since Alexis first started out in music. This is a musician, writer and singer who has carved his own unique path through the music of the 21st century, completely avoiding getting trapped along the way in dumb oppositions of pop vs avant-garde, dancefloor vs intellect, retro vs modernist and so on. He has worked with living legends from major pop stars to free improvisors in the furthest left field, played huge arenas and tiny clubs without ever privileging one over the other, and through all of it, never stopped listening and learning. All of this accumulated experience is put to work on Beautiful Thing in pursuit of something subtle and elusive but ultimately quite profound and beautifully human.

Taylor’s fourth album also represents the first time Alexis has made a solo album with a producer, that producer being Tim Goldsworthy, co-founder of Mo Wax and DFA Recordings and member of UNKLE.

Today, Alexis is pleased to share the video for the album’s title track and the track that kick-started the recording process with Goldsworthy. With ‘Beautiful Thing’, Alexis combines experimental, clattering noises with crazed, disco lavishness and bug-eyed acid house momentum to create something giddy and glorious. The video, directed by Edwin Burdis, is a suitably compelling counterpart.

Theupcoming record is a bold and confident step forward for Alexis both sonically and in terms of his songwriting abilities. It has electronic thrills, dark spaces, memories of dancefloors, heartfelt writing; it's composed, it's improvised, it's accidental, it's strange, but it's also very immediate. It is a beautiful thing itself: a moving, modern and unique sounding long-player, to get lost in on repeated deep listens.

Additionally, Alexis has announced a run of tour dates in UK and Europe including London’s Omeara, where he will be playing accompanied by Susumu Mukai (aka Zongamin) on bass and Leo Taylor (The Invisible, Hot Chip) on drums.

On ‘Middle America’, Malkmus’s wry wordplay and sunny twang create an ode to underdogs everywhere, with bittersweet words of encouragement for the ramshackle character on their receiving end. Only SM & the Jicks can craft this kind of brightly low-key anthem, a perfect three-minute-thirty-second country-speckled gem about life’s questions big (the inevitable passage of time; aging) and small (getting shitfaced; blushing the color of Robitussin).

Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks will tour North America in the summer, hitting major markets including Chicago, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Nashville, San Francisco, Seattle, and Portland. Fans can likely expect a further taste of new music, on top of the band’s beloved catalogue. Full tour dates below.

In 2010, following the success of the Von Südenfed record, it was agreed that Domino would release the next album by The Fall. I was charged with writing the biography for the release and was given a number to ring in order to speak with Mark E. Smith. Elena Poulou answered the phone and in the background I could hear a raucous noise I assumed to be the band rehearsing. Although this was unlikely as I was calling Mark and Elena at their home.

'Sorry,' Elena said as the noise increased in volume and now included laughter and animated shouting 'could you call tomorrow same time, it's not convenient'.

When I telephoned the next day Elena answered once again, apologised for the day before as Mark came briskly to the phone.

'Alright, yeah' he said 'we're going to get this record out. What’s taking so long?' Mark E Smith then chuckled and for the next ten minutes he spoke with the combination of politeness, indignation and occasional contrariness on which his reputation rested.

I asked him about the new album's opening track 'Bury Parts 1 & 3', 'I fucking hate the place' he said, as well as the album's closing number 'Weather Report 2' a song that shared an emotional tenderness and tone with 'Bill Is Dead' from the 1992 album Extricate.

'Well,’ he continued 'I really like the band at the moment and think it’s the best we've sounded. I mean I would say that but I mean it.'

The defining characteristic of 'Weather Report 2' and 'Bill Is Dead' is the rarely heard vulnerability in Smith's voice and a lyric in which he talks openly and dramatically about his life. There was a pause that indicated this brief moment of sentimentality was sufficient and that our conversation had now ended.

Your Future Our Clutter was well received and continued the momentum The Fall had regained at the turn of the century, when a run of strong releases, the renewed interest in Post Punk and their discovery by a new generation led to one of their most energetic and popular periods.

No one would ever doubt Smith's work ethic but by the late 1990s his well-documented behavioural problems, together with the sense of The Fall operating on a treadmill of contractual obligations and cash in hand reissues had curdled his doggedness. Some of the records from this period such as Levitate and The Marshall Suite are eerie in a way few other Fall records are eerie. On them Smith sounds under resourced, both financially and emotionally, to resist his investiture as an Indie National Treasure. A situation he clearly finds intolerable. The productivity rate of the prole art threat had by now threatened the band’s future. At the concert I attended at Dingwalls in '98 the band played as a trio of Smith, Julia Nagle and a drummer, Kate Themen. For ten minutes towards the end the choreographer Michael Clarke joined them on bass. Many present found the performance riveting, but I suspect most assumed they had witnessed the band's final London concert.

Parts of their subsequent survival lie in the regard and mystique with which The Fall were held outside the UK. In the record shop I worked in almost twenty-five years ago, I came close to convincing a young Will Oldham to part with a portion of his fee from the previous night's concert for a mint copy of Fall In A Hole. On a visit to the Domino office Bill Callahan once enquired about the merits of 1997's Levitate, a record very few people I knew had bothered listening to. And despite his regular criticism of the band, Pavement covered The Classical from Hex Enduction Hour for a Peel Session that year. Its inclusion moved the DJ to send the band a personal note of thanks.

It's not difficult to imagine how exotic the early Fall must have seemed to young people in America with enquiring minds. On the 1981 live album A Part Of America Therein, the band are introduced as being from the 'From the riot torn streets of Manchester, England'. The Fall's music of that era is as evocative of Britain in the early 1980s as any World In Action documentary. The lyrics to 'Winter' feature a 'cleaning lady', 'alcoholics dry out house', and a 'feminist Austin maxi with anti nuclear sticker'. The accompanying music is played by a band with a listlessness that, like much of the country at the time, is almost pathological.

The performance the band gave on the Peel session version of 'Winter' is particularly dramatic. On many of these recordings Smith's voice is often louder in the mix and the BBC studio arrangements clearly suited the band. Perhaps Smith was also aware how symbiotic the relationship between The Fall, the radio session and the DJ had become. These were sessions listened to by people who resisted the idea of Smith as an avuncular curmudgeon. They saw him more as an avant-garde Johnny Cash: a man in a black leather jacket and the same neat haircut who was incapable of stopping and whose eyes had become ingrained with crow's feet at an early age. Someone who lived by their wits and was well aware they were sharper and more resilient than those of his contemporaries.

Three years ago I invited Smith to do a Q&A at the stage at Green Man Festival I was then curating. He and the band arrived backstage in their usual manner, in a vehicle branded in the livery of Salford Van Hire. For two hours they sat in the sunshine decompressing from the journey down, laughing and drinking but not to excess, merely enjoying the moment.

When it was time for Smith to take the stage I led him to the side entrance. His right arm shot out with an involuntarily spasm.

'Fucking hell' he whispered 'I didn't know it was this big, can you get us a beer?' I duly passed him a can that he downed in one, before strutted on to the stage with a theatrical sniff and his usual swagger. He received an ovation from the nine hundred people gathered there to see him and for a brief moment a smile cracked across his face. The interview was sponsored by the music magazine Mojo and consisted of questions sent in from its readers. For the next 50 minutes he held forth on matters that provoked his ire: music magazines, Mojo in particular, festivals, Stewart Lee and matters he found inspiring, including Ultramagnetic MCs and Methodism.

Superorganism, one of 2018’s most hotly tipped new artists, today announce full details of their highly anticipated debut album. The eight piece band - a sprawling, multi-limbed collection of international musicians and pop culture junkies who have been shortlisted in the BBC Sound Of and VEVO dscvr polls among others – willrelease their self-titled debut on 2nd March via Domino.

Self-produced, written and recorded in the east London house-stroke-studio-stroke band HQ they all share together (imagine a squat version of the Brill Building, or a lo-fi, DIY take on Max Martin’s Cheiron studio), Superorganism is a spectacularly confident debut record that beams with a sense of wonky fun, a kaleidoscopic riot of sound and visuals. Influenced by the world-building depth of artists like Devo, Beck and The Avalanches, Superoganism soundtrack’s the band’s rapid trajectory from shared house side project to global audiovisual powerhouse and features previous singles ‘Something For Your M.I.N.D.’ and ‘It’s All Good / Nobody Cares’ as well as their brand single ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’.

Revealed today for the very first time, ‘Everybody Wants To Be Famous’ is accompanied by a stunning video from Superorganism’s very own Robert Strange and can be watched right now below.

Meanwhile, Superorganism will be taking their acclaimed live show on the road throughout 2018, including extensive UK, European and north American headline tours. The full dates are below, including a London headline show at the 1000 capacity Oval Space on 8th March, with further information available from http://www.wearesuperorganism.com/#tour

07/12/17

When Wild Beasts announced that they would be calling it a day, the news came with an unusual absence of drama. There were no bust-ups or breakdowns to report, no warring words, not even a trace of the trademark “creative differences”. Instead there was a dignified and heartfelt message to their fans that explained that the band had run its course.

For those who’d watched the Cumbrian group grow from purveyors of peculiar guitar pop into one of the most inventive and important bands of their generation, the news came as a shock. Weren’t they just hitting the peak of their powers? Perhaps that was the point.

“I think there's a life cycle with any band,” says Hayden Thorpe. “It reaches a point where the snake begins to eat its tail. Our last album, ‘Boy King’, felt just like our first record in many ways – in its fuck you spirit, in its sense of self-destruction.”

Wild Beasts will play their final ever shows in February next year, and we bid the band a bittersweet farewell with Last Night All My Dreams Came True– a live studio album to be released on February 16th via Domino Documents.

Last Night All My Dreams Came True is a career-spanning collection and features songs from each of Wild Beasts’ studio albums with an emphasis on Boy King, their most direct record yet. Looking back on Wild Beasts’ back catalogue and the themes they tackled, there is a sense of prescience – toxic masculinity, gender fluidity, the conflicts surrounding class, politics and art were no bandwagon jumps, often becoming hot topics in the media several years after they’d been eloquently dealt with on record.

Today, we are pleased to share ‘The Devil’s Palace’, a rarely-played track that blends ‘The Devil’s Crayon’, from the quartet’s debut Limbo, Panto, and ‘Palace’, from 2014’s Present Tense. An exclusive for the record, it showcases the vocal interplay between Thorpe’s falsetto and Tom Fleming’s baritone perfectly.

Recorded in two days over the summer at RAK Studios, Last Night All My Dreams Came True is the second official Domino Documents release and has more than fulfilled the Domino Documents aim to capture a band at the height of their powers, recording a selection of their finest songs.

“It’s us as tight and slick as we ever have been,” adds Tom. “And it’s also us giving the fewest fucks we've ever given. There’s a sense of celebration and destructiveness combined, a sense that the fetters are off. Not that they were ever on ... but that sense of limited time before you shuffle off is very much a motivator.”

And make no mistake; this is the last time Wild Beasts will be doing such things. This is no hiatus and there are no crafty eyes on a future reunion. “We get to leave our desk by our own accord,” concludes Hayden, “and that makes us very lucky. Whoever gets to do that?”